No. 50 of 112 · Walmsley · Bolton
Christ Church Walmsley
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Christ Church parish church, Walmsley, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, seen from the southwest on a cold, sunny winter's morning. · Andrew Gritt · CC BY-SA 2.0
Sources
Parish or statutory heritage source: building history and features. https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1309572 The building-date field follows Historic England. The parish website gives an 1839 consecration date; accounts differ in how they describe the building period. https://walmsleyparish.org/christ-church/ History and architecture reviewed. Current services, visitor access and map position have not been rechecked.
History & description
Christ Church, Walmsley, is a Grade II listed church on Blackburn Road. Historic England dates it to 1839-1840 and attributes the design to Edmund Sharpe. A west tower, aisled nave, transepts and chancel give the building a substantial presence beside the road.
Architecture and glass
The stone exterior has pointed lancet windows, buttresses and a pinnacled tower. Inside, the heritage record identifies two windows by Morris & Co. after designs by Edward Burne-Jones, dated 1872 and 1895. A west gallery is supported on cast-iron columns.
Objects with other histories
The record describes a fifteenth-century Spanish altarpiece incorporated into later altar furniture. It also notes that the font was transferred from Bolton Parish Church in 1952. These objects connect the present building with earlier craftsmanship and with another church in the area.
Sources: Church / directory reference.
Map position: church point or building centre from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Photograph: Christ Church, Walmsley - geograph.org.uk - 1704909.jpg by Andrew Gritt, via Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 2.0. Shown at reduced size; no other alterations.
Christ Church parish church, Walmsley, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, seen from the southwest on a cold, sunny winter's morning. · Andrew Gritt · CC BY-SA 2.0
